Metal Slug Tactics roguishly reinvents turn-based run-and-gun

GamesRoguelikeMetal Slug TacticsMetal Slug Tactics roguishly reinvents turn-based run-and-gunWhen you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.

When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.

(Image credit: Gamera Games)

A tactical battle

I’ve lost way too much time to the Metal Slug series over the years, that most ubiquitous of Neo Geo arcade shooters. Classic Contra-adjacent run-and-gun shooters; loud, dumb andgorgeouslyanimated. So how on earth does that translate to a turn-based tactics game? After playing a few rounds ofthe surprisingly beefy demo, the answer is ‘impressively well’, a few rough edges aside.

While the battle maps and objectives are hand-made rather than procedurally generated, your route through each region is unpredictable, as are enemy spawns. Mission rewards and the perks available on levelling up are also somewhat randomised, helping keep things fresh even in the demo.

Enemy attacks come frequently and everything has a 100% chance to hit.

Enemy attacks come frequently and everything has a 100% chance to hit. Hoofing it to the limit of your character’s movement range gives them a temporary ‘dodge’ buff, which reduces all incoming damage. Stack that with ending your turn behind cover tiles (handily highlighted in blue) and you can often reduce several hits down to almost nothing, or even no-sell damage entirely.

(Image credit: Gamera Games)

A tactical battle

Given that health recharges fully after each fight and KO’d squaddies are revived for free, it’s often safer to charge headlong into a group of enemies than hunker down. Every system plays into encouraging this kind of measured recklessness, like movement generating Adrenaline, the resource used to activate special abilities.

The biggest gaming news, reviews and hardware deals

Not only is it okay to have enemies shoot at your squad, but if you make the right move, it’sgoodto take damage. Even if two of your squad are dead and a third is at death’s door, completing an objective ensures there’s nothing lost come the start of the next fight. Plus, if you overextend, you can spend extra lives (one of two limited resources, with heavy weapon ammo being the other) to revive them on the spot.

(Image credit: Gamera Games)

A tactical battle

It’s perfectly viable to catch your own teammates in a grenade or shotgun blast if the numbers work in your favour, and not having to worry about healing or revives between fights feels like a huge relief after so many roguelikes where taking a single bad hit can kneecap you for an entire run.

There is room for subtlety, though, and that’s where the Sync system comes in. If you take a shot at an enemy while a teammate is in position to hit with their (free) primary weapon, then they’ll take that shot as a free bonus action. Stack up right, and you can hit enemies with all three characters a turn. Instant death for grunts, and so powerful that bosses can only have one sync shot hit them per turn.

It’s fast, messy knockabout tactics.

In short, it’s fast, messy knockabout tactics. Forgiving if you’re willing to burn lives, but with room for a lot of precision and skill once you understand the mechanics. It feels like Metal Slug. Sounds the part, too, and looks… near enough. Aesthetically, the screenshots and trailer speak for themselves—this is a great-looking game, and while it doesn’tquitenail the aesthetic of SNK’s gorgeous sprite-work (the shading looks a tiny bit off), it comes shockingly close. Every character bounces and wiggles excitedly when left idle, and battle animations are full of exaggerated motion and stretchy, squashy smear frames.

There’s a surprising amount of meat on the demo’s bones too. My first successful run took around an hour, but completing that unlocked close-combat specialist Tarma, the option to spend currency to expand the upgrades pool and a second difficulty level, which bumps up the tier of enemies encountered but bumps up the rewards and vehicle spawns (such as the titular Metal Slug tank) to help deal with the tougher bad guys.

(Image credit: Gamera Games)

A tactical battle

While a good time already, the demo does have a few wrinkles. Though it’s mostly arcade-authentic, the UI looks a little sterile and overly clean in places, and some bigger bits of pixel-art (such as the title screen) look a little underbaked. I also bumped into a couple bugs where the UI refused to respond, forcing me to quit and re-open the game. Thematically, it could also raise eyebrows to see so many scimitar-swinging Arab stereotypes in the demo, with the promise of masked jungle cultists in loincloths coming in the full game. Granted these are all enemies lifted straight from the arcade originals, but might sit poorly with a 2024 audience.

Without a release date pinned down, the technical issues have plenty of potential to get fixed, at the very least, and I’m eager to see the other environments and enemy types. Metal Slug Tactics launches later this year, with the demoavailable on Steam now, and has my seal of approval.

More about roguelikeHyper Light Breaker will cost $30 and for a limited time come with a free copy of DrifterThis bizarre roguelike has a new take on the Vampire Survivors formula: letting you build your own custom weapons out of brains, eyeballs, and chimpanzee spinesLatestThe Last of Us season 2 trailer is a brief look at a story you should probably just play yourself in AprilSee more latest►

More about roguelike

Hyper Light Breaker will cost $30 and for a limited time come with a free copy of DrifterThis bizarre roguelike has a new take on the Vampire Survivors formula: letting you build your own custom weapons out of brains, eyeballs, and chimpanzee spines

Hyper Light Breaker player characters standing in a row with yellow cloud and dark background behind

Hyper Light Breaker will cost $30 and for a limited time come with a free copy of Drifter

A series of large explosions in Bio Prototype.

This bizarre roguelike has a new take on the Vampire Survivors formula: letting you build your own custom weapons out of brains, eyeballs, and chimpanzee spines

LatestThe Last of Us season 2 trailer is a brief look at a story you should probably just play yourself in AprilSee more latest►

Latest

The Last of Us season 2 trailer is a brief look at a story you should probably just play yourself in April

the last of us season 2 trailer

The Last of Us season 2 trailer is a brief look at a story you should probably just play yourself in April

See more latest►

Most Popular

The Witcher 3’s now 2-year-old bonus quest is our first taste of the ‘vibe’ CD Projekt is going for in The Witcher 4

2024 was the year updates for old games beat out all the new ones for me

Train like you game with this adventure-inspired workout

‘It’s simply impossible to make a difficulty level that’s just right for all players’: How Final Fantasy 14’s lead battle designer has been playing a precarious balancing game for Dawntrail’s dungeons and raids

Please join me in getting super excited for all the cool looking survival games coming in 2025 (and beyond)

Competitive shooters are at a crucial crossroads in 2025: ‘sweaty’ teamplay vs. casual fun

Call of Duty’s $28 Squid Game skins are the perfect crossover for our capitalist dystopia, and Activision knows exactly what it’s doing

These are the 14 biggest upcoming RPGs of 2025—get ready for another amazing year for the genre

Five new Steam games you probably missed (January 6, 2025)

I’ve seen enough: No more forcing singleplayer studios to make mediocre live service games

HARDWARE BUYING GUIDESLATEST GAME REVIEWS1Best Steam Deck accessories in Australia for 2025: Our favorite docks, powerbanks and gamepads2Best graphics card for laptops: the mobile GPUs I’d want in my next gaming laptop3Best mini PCs in 2025: The compact computers I love the most4Best 14-inch gaming laptop: The top compact gaming laptops I’ve held in these hands5Best Mini-ITX motherboards in 2025: My pick from all the mini mobo marvels I’ve tested1Thank Goodness You’re Here! review: An anarchic treasure trove of jokes and skits2Shiren the Wanderer: The Mystery Dungeon of Serpentcoil Island review—like juggling chainsaws on horseback3WD Black SN850X 8 TB NVMe SSD review4Ikea Utespelare desk review5Asus ROG Harpe Ace Mini wireless mouse review

HARDWARE BUYING GUIDESLATEST GAME REVIEWS

1Best Steam Deck accessories in Australia for 2025: Our favorite docks, powerbanks and gamepads

A bunch of the best Steam Deck accessories on a blue background.

1Best Steam Deck accessories in Australia for 2025: Our favorite docks, powerbanks and gamepads

Best Steam Deck accessories in Australia for 2025: Our favorite docks, powerbanks and gamepads

2Best graphics card for laptops: the mobile GPUs I’d want in my next gaming laptop

Best graphics card for laptops: the mobile GPUs I’d want in my next gaming laptop

3Best mini PCs in 2025: The compact computers I love the most

Best mini PCs in 2025: The compact computers I love the most

4Best 14-inch gaming laptop: The top compact gaming laptops I’ve held in these hands

Best 14-inch gaming laptop: The top compact gaming laptops I’ve held in these hands

5Best Mini-ITX motherboards in 2025: My pick from all the mini mobo marvels I’ve tested

Best Mini-ITX motherboards in 2025: My pick from all the mini mobo marvels I’ve tested

1Thank Goodness You’re Here! review: An anarchic treasure trove of jokes and skits

Thank Goodness You’re Here review

1Thank Goodness You’re Here! review: An anarchic treasure trove of jokes and skits

Thank Goodness You’re Here! review: An anarchic treasure trove of jokes and skits

2Shiren the Wanderer: The Mystery Dungeon of Serpentcoil Island review—like juggling chainsaws on horseback

Shiren the Wanderer: The Mystery Dungeon of Serpentcoil Island review—like juggling chainsaws on horseback

3WD Black SN850X 8 TB NVMe SSD review

WD Black SN850X 8 TB NVMe SSD review

4Ikea Utespelare desk review

Ikea Utespelare desk review

5Asus ROG Harpe Ace Mini wireless mouse review

Asus ROG Harpe Ace Mini wireless mouse review

The biggest gaming news, reviews and hardware deals#

The biggest gaming news, reviews and hardware deals